Posted by Chris Severance on May 19, 19100 at 20:54:01: via: n4-p55.modempool.com or 198.109.218.55
In Reply to: Re: Condenser size posted by Sandy on May 19, 19100 at 14:20:48:
>it's my understanding that the orifice tubes and fittings on a R-134a system are a different size to accomadate higher pressure
This may not be observable on a sealed system. In any case it would have been on your bill. They aren't given away for free.
>You mentioned parallel vs serial flow, is serial flow more efficeint?
Serial flow has one pipe that snakes through. Parallel has many pipes all in parallel. I can see your old condensor has a splitter manifold that feeds 15 or so pipes meaning parallel. Your new one appears to be only one pipe. As for efficiency, a serial flow will force the most heat given up for a unit amount of refrigerant but a parallel flow will transfer the maximum amount of refrigerant. Since both are important for cool passengers I don't think the parallel vs serial issue as simple as us unscientific people make it out to be. I tend to think that surface area is the biggest factor in determining heat reduction.
>You mentioned a kit in regards to the new condenser
Your old condenser mounted directly to the car. The new one had brackets and extention pipes. Either these come with the replacement condenser or it was a separate kit.
As for R-12 or R-134a, something should have shown up in your bill. Your deer vented the R-12 so the EPA should give it a ticket. Without any R-12 they would have sold you something, either R-134a or R-12. R-12 never comes in kits so it would have been an extra non-small charge. R-134a could have been hidden in your kit. Kits are $35-$50 each so your price from a AC shop could be $80 or higher. If your AC shop used R-134a and didn't perform the proper retrofit with stickers and fittings, it is considered a SHAM retrofit and the EPA doesn't like that. If they work for compensation (charge money) I bet secretly the EPA does like it since the fines are quite high. Such action may encourage your shop to fess up and make some deals. You may wish to check out the EPA website to learn about the details of retrofitting.